Portmanteau
by pentameter-and-pen
Summary: Fitzsimmons. Five times Leo and Jemma were called Fitzsimmons. And the one time they were not.


**Portmanteau**

Fitzsimmons. Five times Leo and Jemma were called Fitzsimmons. And the one time they were not.

FSFSFSFSSF

The first time it happens, it's at a party their first year. Three months in one of the students at the academy decides to throw a party, and surprisingly Fitz and Simmons are both invited. In reality, it was to be expected. Three months in and they've already found themselves at the top of their class. Nervous, but mostly excited, they enter in tandem, sticking close to each other's side. Prior to this neither of them had been invited to a party in their old lives, their soaring intellects that instead of being prized like at the academy, proved to be their Achilles heel when it came to socialisation in the outside world.

So as they enter the room that is the epicentre of the music they'd heard all the way from Simmons' dorm room they become aware of just how much the tables have turned. At the sight of them the entire throng of partygoers lets out a loud cheer.

At the sound, Fitz quickly glances upward and is relieved to see that there are no buckets of pigs blood waiting to be spilled on them. He'd watched Carrie once and it had had quite the effect on him. In any case it would be a shame to ruin Simmons's new sweater. Even though she could probably come up with a solvent that could not only take all the blood out but somehow also leave her sweater as good as new.

Feeling his eyes on her, she turns to look at him. She smiles when she sees he has that far away look in his eye, no doubt planning some kind of device in his head.

"Come on Fitz," she says softly tugging at his hand as she takes a step forward.

It's not until that moment Simmons realises she's holding his hands. Her cheeks burn as she remembers grabbing it in surprise as the noise of the cheer startled her. She lets go only to find that he's the one still holding on to her. She can feel her cheeks go a deeper red - is that even scientifically possible?

However it isn't embarrassment fuelling her reaction, instead it's a deep seated sense of pleasure. That takes her by surprise. Since when was this the reaction Fitz elicited from her?

Her concern is overridden by the fact that his holding her hand is extremely enjoyable, causing a host of butterflies in her stomach. In particular she likes the way her hand fits in his, filling the nooks and crannies like a living foam.

Her eyes move from their hands to his face and she smiles fondly at him, his eyes still glazed over.

That's when Fitz realises he's been staring at Simmons again - only this time she's noticed, quietly watching him back. Noticing the red tinges in her cheeks he realises he's made her blush - probably out of embarrassment. His observation causes his cheeks to redden too. She'd never noticed before because she was always been caught up in one of her studies or doing some homework.

He sighs inwardly. Homework. There's nothing Simmons loves more than homework. And there's nothing he loves more than watching Simmons do her homework. The smile that lights up her face when she solves a problem or makes a breakthrough is easily better than his own successes. In fact it's very similar to the smile she's wearing now as she watches him - except this one is shyer than he's ever seen.

He swallows nervously, feeling hot all over.

"Quite the party, huh?" He asks her, his nerves causing his throat to run dry.

She shakes her head, not comprehending what he's saying. This is unsurprising considering the volume of the revelry around them. So he leans in, repeating the question into her right ear.

Before she can answer, he feels something suddenly land on his shoulder. Surprised he jumps back, not before brushing past her cheek with his.

He quickly turns to see the source of the sudden shock. Only to discover that it's Anita Gupta's hand. Looking at her he sees she also has a hand on Simmons' shoulder

"Fitzsimmons! You made it!" She exclaims loudly over the music while grinning at them. "Thought you love birds would never get here! Go get yourselves a drink!"

She gives them each another pat before going to greet someone else.

Flustered, Fitz and Simmons look at each other. Finally Simmons makes the decision for both of them, as she does follows Anita's instructions and heads towards the keg in the corner of the room. Almost automatically Fitz follows, less than half a step behind.

As he watches her make her way through the crowd whilst greeting other classmates, he replays the last few minutes in his head. But he gets no further than the scent of his perfume in his nose - lilies - and the feel of her smooth cheek on his.

He'd always thought her skin would be soft - he just wasn't prepared for just how soft it really was. He fights the urge to bring his arm up to his cheek, afraid that she would catch him in the act.

Once at the drinks table, Simmons goes about pouring them both drinks. It's no different than her daily morning routine of brewing them both cups of tea - his a dark oolong, hers a subtle green. But somehow knowing this is alcohol makes it all the more different. Her hands shake a little as she fills up the blue solo cup commonly associated with raucous parties like this. Handing it to him, she gets started on her own.

She's glad her hands are being kept busy. All they want to do is fly up to her cheek and touch the spot their faces had grazed one another. She doesn't know how that's supposed to help her - it's not like she's going to absorb any of his essence. She shakes her head, but she can't get rid of the slight whiff she's gotten of him - the cinnamon-like scent both homey and unusually spicy. Not what she'd imagined his aftershave to smell like. Not that she'd imagined him using after shave - or even shaving. She quickly drags her mind back before it can go running off, as it often tends to when it comes to her male lab partner.

Instead she just raises her glass to his and 'cheers' him. That seems to snap him out of the stiff pose with his hand to his side, and back to the lively, talkative Scotsman she'd come to know and love. Maybe not love. Maybe just strong like. Yes, she decides. She only strongly likes Leopold Fitz.

After a few minutes of standing around and trying to enjoy the party, Fitz finds them a nook off to the corner for them to stand in.

Simmons slides in first and Fitz after her, his back to the rest of the room, hers go the wall. Unsure what to say next they both take a sip of their beers.

Noticing this Simmons chuckles and shakes her head, gesturing to the cup in her hand. "I don't much like this."

Fitz nods in agreement and relief. "Me neither. Why is there so much excitement over this? It's only alcohol - not the elixir of life."

She waits a beat before-

"Simmons do you think we could-"

She shakes her head, smiling at him. "Fitz we can't just invent the elixir of life."

"But Jemma-"

As soon as he says it he stops talking. They stand there staring at each other.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." He says, quickly apologising.

Simmons looks at him like he's made. "You didn't mean to use my name? Fi- Leo, it's fine! You can call me that."

"I know, it's just..." His eyes remain focused in the floor as he refuses to look at her. "That's always been everyone else's name for you. Your parents, the teachers at the academy- I thought Fitz and Simmons could be our special thing, you know? Like a secret club. The kind that has a clubhouse and everything."

When he finally does look her in the eye, he looks like the shy young boy she knew he'd been all those years before they'd met. The shy young boy who's had no friends and had wanted nothing more than to belong to a club with passwords and secret handshakes and a headquarters in a tree. She supposes it's why S.H.I.E.L.D had appealed to him so much - how much more exclusive or secret could one organisation be?

She smiles at him softly, and Fitz knows she understands. Because she too was a misunderstood young girl who'd been teased incessantly for her love of science and refusal to participate in 'girly' activities to her parents' chagrin. It's funny, when he'd first met her he'd thought she was too beautiful to be a scientist. Now that he knows her, he thinks she's too brilliant to be just a scientist.

"Well," she reasons. "You heard Anita. Turns out Fitz and Simmons aren't just ours any more."

"Fitzsimmons..." He says out loud as he tries out both words all smooshed into one. He smiles. The word fits in his mouth and rolls off his tongue with ease - like it was always meant to be said that way.

"I quite like the sound of that." He says with a grin.

She matches it with one of her own. "Me too. Maybe that means Jemma and Leo will become our new code names."

She holds up her hand shake his. He takes it awkwardly not sure where she's going. They fumble about for a few seconds before both laughing at themselves.

"Looks like we're going to have to work on that secret handshake Leo."

It feels strange saying his name like that, like opening a dusty old cupboard and airing it out. Except now it feels like there's an added layer to their relationship - almost as if they found a room that hadn't been used in years.

Leo and Jemma cheers again and take a sip, only to be reminded of how much they dislike the taste of what's in their cups.

As they cough, they catch each other's eyes and smile.

When Fitz doesn't say anything about Anita's other comment regarding them being 'lovebirds' she breathes a sign of relief. This means he has no clue about her feelings for him. A part of her feels disappointed. What if he likes her too? What if they actually had a chance at being together romantically? That is all that's left in their relationship, having entered the finish each other's food stage last week. She'd have added the share clothes phase, but that seems to be just her borrowing Fitz' sweaters. But there was no sign he felt that way about her. So instead she just smiles after all the coughing.

As Fitz coughs out the last dregs of the drink from his mouth, his mind goes to the last part of what Anita said - about them being 'lovebirds'. He tries not to sigh too loudly. He didn't realise it, but as soon as she said the word he'd realised he wanted nothing more than to actually be romantically involved with his female lab partner - and as he'd realised a few minutes ago, best friend in the world. But it appears that she didn't hear that part. As disappointed as he is, he's a little relieved too. It would have hurt a thousand fold if she didn't return his feelings. And he's not sure he'd get over that. So he just ignores the ache in his chest and smiles back.

They stand there awkwardly for a moment, with the music throbbing loudly and their fellow colleagues drinking and dancing around them. Science nerds or jocks, it seemed that at the end of the day everyone parties the same way.

Simmons is the first one to break. Looking around she quickly steps closer to Fitz and leans in to his ear, "Leo, would you like to watch a movie instead?"

The look of relief on Fitz's face matches her own as he nods. He leans in to her ear. "Anything but Carrie."

She gives him a funny look before she moves past him and into the crowd on her way to the door. Fitz follows close behind.

Somewhere in the middle, their hands find each other, slowly interlocking and keeping them tied to one another. It's evident it's a reassuring gesture to both. They don't let go until they're in Fitz's dorm and Simmons goes to find a sweater she can change into.

FSFSFSFSFS

"Fitzsimmons are leaving already? They just got here!" Observes Nate Matthews as he hands Anita another drink.

Glancing over at their retreating forms, she smiles. "Trust me, they don't need a party when they've got each other."

FSFSFSFSFS

**A/N:** I just really wanted to explore not only how the name "Fitzsimmons " came about, but also their respective childhoods and time at the academy before the show. I thought their interactions here felt right since they're halfway between having met recently and connecting with each other. So understandably they'd still be a little awkward around each other and a big more vocal about a few things because they haven't quite found that groove where they can communicate silently with one another.

As usual, if you have any thoughts, comments, questions or concerns, let me know! If you enjoyed this story, check out my other stuff on tumblr, and AO3. Thanks for reading!


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